June 2, 2012

It's been an eventful week, in more ways than one. There's so much to talk about, and some of it's uplifting and heart-filling moments, some of it enrages and saddens at the same time. Some of it is sheer curiosity on our part.

The heart-filling moments have involved my dear daughter, so far away "back home" in Michigan, where I'm originally from. Last time I wrote, she'd finished her last day of high school there. This week, on Thursday night, she walked for commencement. We are so proud of her, and her accomplishments. Wednesday night was Senior Awards Banquet, with the awards presentations after the dinner.  She got a music-related scholarship for $500. That one's based on a former music teacher for her high school who died suddenly and rather shockingly shortly after his retirement. His family established the scholarship. Big thanks to them. Big thanks also, as my daughter said, to her counselor, who helped so much through the last couple of years for her. DD also got an academic letter, an outstanding performance award for recognition of exceptions skills or ability in academic excellence, a perfect attendance award, and a Michigan Competitive Scholarship award, which is also worth up to $500 because of her high ACT scores. That was the high points of the week, even though hubster and I couldn't be up there to watch her walk and go to the open house today. That part's pretty crappy.

Thursday, I also woke up sick as all get out. Not to where I had to see a doctor sick, which is good, as I am a homeopath and much prefer not to visit the degreed quacks. But it was enough that it took me forty-five minutes to eat a bowl of cereal, and that wasn't even counting getting dressed, which I hadn't done yet. I apparently looked like sheer h**l, so Q wouldn't let me go to work, even going to far as to threaten to slash the tires on the car to make me take a sick day. He pulled rank on me!!!!!! Yeah, I'd like you to feel a little sorry for me, okay? He stood at the end of the bed and freaking glared at me while standing with his arms crossed and wouldn't let me go to work. So I had to call in, and I had to admit later that he was right. When I woke up again about nine-thirty, I decided to brush my hair. Took me twenty frigging minutes to do a five-minute job and I was exhausted by the end and nearly fell on my kiester. Shoot. Back to bed till one-ish, when he headed to work, before I felt halfway human again. So I feel kind of bad about Friday's events, because if I'd been able to go to work, I'd've been there to likely put a stop to what happened.

The enraging and saddening time was yesterday, Friday. After a half-day at work, I headed to the property for what was supposed to be a couple of hours of brush-cutting. All I can say to start is it's a good thing I moved the woodpile out of the power easement area last week, because the power company brush-hogged the easement. That's fine, they're allowed to. They are not, however, allowed to park their bleeping brush-hog on the private part of the property outside the easement, or have anything to do with this:

Yep, that is where the Taurus and the van were sitting. Supposedly, they were there Thursday when the crew brush-hogged and left at around one or one-thirty in the afternoon. Mind, the whole easement was brush-hogged, so why they parked their friggin' equipment on our property (ours by rental, but still ours) other than, oh wow, no furniture in the trailer, place must be abandoned, so we can park our stupid brush-hog here for however long we want! The two hours that I was going to be there yesterday turned into more like six hours by the time it was all done, between getting there and getting home.  It was about five hours up there altogether.

Yesterday's cast of characters:
Q - the hubster, and the more physical half of the renters
Me - the renter and spouse of the other half of the renters
M - my best friend an Mom to D1
P - husband to M and stepdad to D1, aka Daddy or P!!!!!!!!!!!
D1 - daughter to M, darn near a sister to me, and landlady (yes, you figured it right - we are renting from my best friend's daughter, lol)
D2 - husband to D1
CM - Deputy Sheriff from the County Mounties
BO - Brush-hog Operator. I know, I gave him an uncomplimentary nickname, but goodness, he deserves it, the idiot. Parking the equipment on private property.

Situation:
I leave work in H-ville at the plant about 12:30 in the afternoon, and head to the little neighborhood Wally World they have there to pick up a snack to take with me to the property. Grabbed a Snickers bar, if you must know, so I could have it with my sammich and nut bar (I'm a little addicted to those Nature Valley Chewy Sweet and Salty Almond Bars) when I got to the house and could sit down to have my other lunch that I normally would have had on second break. I've already called Q to let him know I'll be at the property and for how long, chatted for a bit about Saturday's plans, and said see you Monday to all my coworkers. I got to the mountain road, headed up, thinking what a lovely day it was, and it really was. Gorgeous skies, comfortable temps, would have made for a glorious day to work outside on the brush pile. Instead, I pull in and find the d**ned brush-hog parked on the property, right next to the driveway where I usually park the car. I had to park nearly on the county road to be able to get out! He'd run over some stuff Q was going to cut down for me with the doggone thing in doing so, too. Bloody H**L.

Then I started walking up the driveway. Lalalala. Oh wow, the Taurus and the van are go ----.... *jaw drops* *eyes bugging out* Oh f**k, the Taurus and the van are gone!!!!! Into the trailer I go, to drop my lunch bag, and fish out my cellphone to call Q. Three times I call, and no answer. I finally texted him to please pick up the phone, and he called me back, wondering what the problem was. Mind, the rent had been due that day (Friday), but since Q had the day off, he paid it to D2 at the plant where they both work the day before, so as to not miss dropping it off. I ask Q, "When you gave the rent to D2 yesterday, did he say anything about them coming up to the property to get the vehicles?"
"No, honey, he didn't, why?"
"Because they're gone."
  "What?!?!?!?!?!"
"They are gone. As in, not here. The places they sat are empty, devoid of vehicles."
"Oh f**k, we're in trouble."
"No, dear, we aren't in trouble. Whoever took them, however, is."

I ended up texting him the number for D1, as he wanted to make the call and find out for himself. A text soon arrived from M, asking me to stay up there if I was still there, and wait for everybody. P was on his way. Turned out, not only was P on the way, but so were D1 and M. Now, with M being pretty much completely "broken," as D1 is fond of putting it, they had to bring along her medications and little portable walker/chair, and good thing they did.

P arrived first and started to call the county mounties. D1 arrived with M as passenger in D1's van, and more phone calls ensued. I kept Q updated by texts, as well as eventually making a call to get a number for a scrap metal recycler up here near where we currently live. That was a good idea, as they had information on another one up this way. M called the local electric company to gripe about the vehicles being missing and they actually hung up on her. Mind, she was being nice but firm, and basically saying that if someone of their people had stolen them, she just wanted them back, no questions asked if they were returned. And the lady hung up on her. M called right back and was soooo nice. "Hi, Leslie. This is M. We were just talking about the missing vehicles and I guess we got cut off somehow." She can be so saccharine when she's really mad.

Soon after, she ended up talking to the Operations Manager for the electric company and I believe the General Manager as well. In the long run, the OM was willing to vouch for his people, after all, he personally hired every one of them! They wouldn't do something like this, he'd swear to it on a stack of Bibles as high as the moon! Maybe somebody drove by (a mile or more up a steepish mountain road that's reasonably remote????) and saw them from the road! (And considering that unless you are on the property, with or without permission, nine months of the year, you can't see diddly-squat from the road, that's a crock of s**t. Sorry for the potty-mouth, this whole thing cheeses me off like you wouldn't believe.) M did get them to agree to send someone out immediately to move the friggin' brush-hog.

Eventually, the CM arrived, and took the report. By then, some one of M or D1 or P had managed to find the VIN number for the Taurus and they were able to get that information to the CM. Also, D1 had been on the phone a few times to D2, who was still pretty mad about the whole thing and was calling tow truck companies to see if they'd towed the vehicles. When Q had called D2 originally and spoke with D2 as well, D2 was ... incensed would be mild, I would think. While waiting for the CM, I gave D1 and M the walking tour of the house, as they hadn't seen it since before cleanup started. Between that and what we've done to the outside, they were impressed, and at one point, D1 gave me a hug and thanked me for Q and I being up there. Otherwise, I don't think they'd've known the vehicles were gone for quite a while. I still feel bad, because if I hadn't gotten sick, I would have worked, and likely would have gotten to the property about the time that one of the vehicles was doing a disappearing act. But I feel good, too, because if I wasn't the type to show up there every day after I get off work, even just to do a walkaround, those vehicles could have been long gone and nobody would have known and the vehicles likely would have long since been scrapped, with no hope of ever finding out who took them. By being able to notify D1 and company so quickly, the police will be able to find the creeps who did this a lot faster and get them where they belong. To my mind, that's behind bars somewhere, but that's me.

Eventually, the blasted BO arrived to move the brush-hog, and stood around yakking, trying to garner sympathy. I'm sorry that he was going to be late for a wedding where he was apparently best man, and that he "had" to drive so fast to U-ette to get the keys to the brush-hog from his partner, just so he could come up and move it from where it was, but with all his "manly" whining about all of this, I wanted to get in his face and tell him that my Give A F**k button was broke, because if he or his partner (he admitted there was just the two of them up there working) hadn't stolen the cars, they likely knew who did, and are just as guilty as whoever took the things, never mind whoever drove the flatbed that had to be used to haul the flat- or no-tired Taurus and van out of there. Never mind, either, that he drove over my little pile of leafy bits that was going to be our kindling for this winter and shredded it for no good reason, since it wasn't even in the way. And let us not even get started on the fact that he shredded a few small trees with the brush-hog that were going to go into our woodpile, and parked the d**ned thing on private property. Freaking stupid idiot. He may be pretty smart, in general, but good grief, how stupid do you have to be to park your company heavy equipment on someone's private property? Like I told D1, Q and I plan on putting up fencing and separating the land into small pastures after a while, and what if we'd already had fencing up? D1 said, he'd've torn it right out, and she's right. And heaven forfend if we had livestock inside the fencing, as they'd've been free on the mountain. Oh yeah, that situation would have been a real gem. Eventually, we all left, but what a day Friday was. (And to D1 and M and company, I know I got stuff out of order to some extent, but the major points are correctly ordered!!! My brain is still freaking fried from yesterday's "little bit of fun."

So details were related to Q when I got home, and he's upset, too. You can imagine why. Among other things, we're responsible for making sure those vehicles don't get damaged. They have a lot of sentimental value to D1 and D2, and keeping them safeguarded was part of our job. Mind, everybody kept telling me we weren't in trouble, all was well, etc., but I still feel somewhat bad about it. I'll get over it in a few days. Have to admit, I feel worst for whoever took them, though, they're going to be in some serious doodoo with D1 and M and crew. M is especially seething over the camping gear that was in the van.

But that was yesterday, and today was a new tale. We got up, gassed up the van, grabbed powerades for Q, and headed to the property. The photo I took of his rather angry face at seeing where the vehicles were came out so blurry he's a blob, lol, but you should have seen his face. I don't think I've ever seen him quite that mad about something before. Plans for the day were reinforcing the deck joists (involving pulling off the plywood we'd reused last week temporarily), tacking down that piece of plywood so it won't shift while we're working on things, and getting some of the flagged stuff taken down. He especially wanted to try to get the big tree with the no trespassing sign downed and cut up some, and move the sign to the address number tree.

So we get out of the van, and one of the first things I see is this:

a cute little baby praying mantis! It's a bit blurry because I had to zoom in quite a bit to get a good shot of it, because it was just that tiny, maybe half an inch long. Isn't it cute?

This blurry shot is Q using the chainsaw on what was left of the logs he was going to try to cut up last weekend when the chainsaw bogged down. Turns out it was just horribly gunked up around the flywheel, and because of that mess, the flywheel couldn't possibly turn. No wonder it would start but not stay started. Sheesh. Some of the logs were driven over and brush-hogged by the idiot brush-hog driver. Mind, he moved some of them, but not all of them. If he could move all the heavier stuff, why couldn't he move all the lighter stuff, too? For heaven's sake, I put them all there, and I grant they were in the easement, at the edge of the drive, but I'm a small, fat woman. If I can move them off the frigging hill to where they were, why couldn't a big, strong man like BO move the little stuff, too? Honestly, when I moved them today for Q to cut up, I managed to haul them around three and four at a time. And I was moving them about ten or twelve feet up the drive, and all BO did was move them about two feet.

And this was the woodpile at the start of the day, before I started stacking on what Q cut up. Notice the water jugs? Mine, for rinsing off sweat and drinking. Oh wait, women glow. We don't sweat. So I use part of it for rinsing off the glow. Notice that the people who stole the vehicles moved my water jugs so nicely out of the way over by the new home of the woodpile.

These were my black raspberry brambles under the master bedroom window. They are now trampled to nothing. Grrr. There were still a lot of nice berries on them that weren't ripe yet for me to snack on, and now they are destroyed, pure and simple. All for someone to be greedy. It's not like they couldn't tell the place wasn't abandonded. The new work on the deck and the path down the driveway having recently cut down grass and weeds in it, and the brush pile being full of stuff with brown leaves on it, should all have been enough to show the place wasn't abandonded.

The deck after we took the loose board back off so Q could work on the joists more on the other side. You can see under the deck base also the rest of that other board and the joist that came down with it.

The wood that Q cut up before working on the deck, all stuff too big or too solid for me to get the handsaw through it. Took me six or seven trips with armloads to get this all piled into the woodpile.

The view down the mountain through the easement, where the vehicles were sitting. In the background, you can see the mountain that I can see through the trees from the deck during the winter. Blurry but it's awful pretty as a view.

Q working on the deck again. He's installing some joist braces to stabilize the deck, before putting things back together.

Nailing in another of the joist supports. See, Q has a face!!!!

Now he's putting what Lowe's called a "pole barn spike" into the side of the deck and into the end of the one joist where it is in the hanger.

That's the spike about halfway into the joist. Q stood up to wipe some sweat off, and I took advantage to get a shot of the spike.

Toenailing the spike into the other end of the joist. He's determined the thing isn't going to come apart until we're able to actually replace the deck properly.

Taking a short breather after getting the joists supported and the deck board back up, prior to tacking it down so it stays put.

This was what they did with the brush-hog to the very end of the brush pile and my pile of leafy kindling, which they didn't even need to run over. Yeesh. Shreds and busted wood.

The woodpile from another view, at the end of the day. Sure is growing. And yes, that monstrosity in the back is the blasted brush-hog that BO finally had come and moved into the easement where it properly belonged in the first place.

And this is the base of the tree that originally held the no trespassing sign, which was relocated to the tree above the house numbers. Q notched this sucker about four times trying to get it to come down, but it's oak, and it's big, and it has a serious case of "F**K YOU!" It isn't coming down easily or any time soon. Sheesh. It honestly won't even shift the littlest bit yet, but since the top of it is dead and the dead bits are slowly moving down the tree toward the ground, it's got to go. But it doesn't want to. Balls. Maybe next week.

For now, I'm off to bed. It's been a long day and I need to get some sleep. Tomorrow comes far too early, even if it is a Sunday and day off.